Adjustable fittings for attaching support members to fluid conduits, including aircraft fuel conduits, and associated systems and methods

ABSTRACT

Adjustable fittings for attaching support members to fluid conduits, including aircraft fuel conduits, are disclosed herein. An aircraft system in accordance with one embodiment of the invention includes a fluid conduit carried by an aircraft and a housing fixedly attached to the fluid conduit. The housing can include a first attachment feature having one of a projection extending outwardly from the housing or an aperture extending at least partially through the housing. The system further includes a support member having an attachment portion positioned proximate to the attachment feature. The attachment portion includes a support member aperture positioned over at least a portion of the first attachment feature. An adjustable fitting couples the support member to the housing. The adjustable fitting can include a first side, a second side opposite the first side, and an engagement portion at the second side positioned within at least a portion of the support member aperture. The fitting can also include a second attachment feature mated with the first attachment feature. The second attachment feature includes the other one of the projection or the aperture. The second attachment feature has a center point eccentrically offset from a center point of the fitting.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority to pending U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 60/689,223, filed Jun. 9, 2005, and incorporated hereinin its entirety by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention is directed generally toward adjustable fittingsfor attaching support members to fluid conduits, including aircraft fuelconduits, and associated systems and methods.

BACKGROUND

Modern aircraft include complex fuel systems that route aviation fuelfrom fuel tanks to aircraft systems that use the fuel. These aircraftsystems can include the primary engines and/or auxiliary power units(APUs). In the case of an aerial refueling tanker and/or receiveraircraft, these systems can also include the fluid conduits (e.g., fuellines), manifolds, and associated valving necessary for delivering fuelto a receiver aircraft and/or receiving fuel in-flight from a tankeraircraft. In some cases, the fuel lines may pass through “ignitionzones,” which are typically pressurized compartments in the aircraft(e.g., baggage compartments) that may also house electrical devices.

One concern with this arrangement is that the fuel passing through thefluid conduits imparts substantial loads (e.g., surge loads and pressureloads) on the fluid conduits. Accordingly, in many cases support membersare attached to various portions of the fluid conduits to distributeand/or transfer the imposed loads to appropriate reaction locations ofthe aircraft. The support members are generally attached tocorresponding fluid conduits with one or more fittings. Manyconventional fittings, however, cannot withstand the imposed loads.

Another concern with the above-described arrangement is that the supportmembers generally include suitable tolerances to compensate for themanufacturing tolerances between the various components. Mostconventional fittings, however, are not configured to compensate for thevarious manufacturing tolerances between the different components and,accordingly, a number of different support members and/or fittings haveto be manufactured for particular installations. Accordingly, there is aneed for fittings configured to withstand the imposed loads whilekeeping the attached support members in place with respect to the fluidconduits.

SUMMARY

The invention is directed generally to adjustable fittings for attachingsupport members to fluid conduits, including aircraft fuel conduits, andassociated methods. An aircraft system in accordance with one embodimentof the invention includes a fluid conduit carried by an aircraft and ahousing fixedly attached to the fluid conduit. The housing can include afirst attachment feature having one of a projection extending outwardlyfrom the housing or an aperture extending at least partially through thehousing. The system further includes a support member having anattachment portion positioned proximate to the attachment feature. Theattachment portion includes a support member aperture positioned over atleast a portion of the first attachment feature. An adjustable fittingcouples the support member to the housing. The adjustable fitting caninclude a first side, a second side opposite the first side, and anengagement portion at the second side positioned within at least aportion of the support member aperture. The fitting can also include asecond attachment feature mated with the first attachment feature. Thesecond attachment feature includes the other one of the projection orthe aperture. The second attachment feature has a center pointeccentrically offset from a center point of the fitting. After initialinstallation, the adjustable fitting is rotatable with respect to thefirst attachment feature to secure the fitting in place against thesupport member and the housing.

Another aspect of the invention is directed to an assembly including afirst member coupled to a second member with an adjustable fitting. Thefirst member can have a first attachment feature including one of aprojection extending outwardly from the first member or an apertureextending at least partially through the first member. The secondmember, which is positioned proximate to the first member, can include asecond member aperture positioned over at least a portion of the firstattachment feature. The adjustable fitting coupling the first member tothe second member can include a first side facing away from the firstmember and a second side facing toward the first member. The second sidecan include an engagement portion positioned within at least a portionof the second member aperture. The fitting can further include a secondattachment mated with the first attachment feature. The secondattachment feature has the other one of the projection or the aperture.The second attachment feature has a center point eccentrically offsetfrom a center point of the adjustable fitting. After initiallyinstalling the fitting, the fitting can be rotated in a generallyclockwise and/or counterclockwise direction to releasably secure thefitting against at least a portion of the first attachment feature.

Still another aspect of the invention is directed to a method forinstalling a support member with a fluid conduit. The method can includepositioning a support member proximate to a fluid conduit. The supportmember includes a support member aperture positioned over at least aportion of a first attachment feature carried by the fluid conduit. Themethod can also include inserting at least a portion of an adjustablefitting having a second attachment feature through the support memberaperture and mating the first and second attachment features. The secondattachment feature is eccentrically offset from a center point of theadjustable fitting. The method can further include rotating the fittingwith respect to the first attachment feature until the second attachmentfeature fixedly engages at least a portion of the first attachmentfeature to secure the support member in place with respect to the fluidconduit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a partially schematic, isometric illustration of a refuelingaircraft positioned to refuel a receiver aircraft and having fluidconduits attached to one or more support members with adjustablefittings configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 2A-2D are illustrations of various stages of a method for usingadjustable fittings to couple support members to fluid conduits inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an isometric illustration of a stage in a method for usingadjustable fittings to couple support members to fluid conduits inaccordance with another embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are isometric illustrations of adjustable fittingsconfigured in accordance with additional embodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure describes adjustable fittings for securingsupport members to fluid conduits, such as aircraft fuel lines and othersystems, and also discloses associated methods. Certain specific detailsare set forth in the following description and in FIGS. 1-4B to providea thorough understanding of various embodiments of the invention.Well-known structures, systems, and methods often associated with suchsystems have not been shown or described in detail to avoidunnecessarily obscuring the description of the various embodiments ofthe invention. In addition, those of ordinary skill in the relevant artwill understand that additional embodiments of the invention may bepracticed without several of the details described below.

FIG. 1 illustrates an aircraft 100 (e.g., a refueling aircraft) in theprocess of refueling a receiver aircraft 120 with an aerial refuelingdevice 114. The aircraft 100 can include a fuselage 101, wings 102, andone or more engines 103 (two are shown in FIG. 1 as being carried by thewings 102). In other embodiments, the aircraft can have otherconfigurations and, in at least some embodiments, need not include arefueling capability. In a particular aspect of the embodiment shown inFIG. 1, the aircraft 100 includes a fuel system 110 having wing-mountedfuel tanks 111 and fluid conduits 130 (e.g., fuel lines) that providefuel to other aircraft systems. These systems can include the engines103, an APU 105, and an aerial refueling system 113. The fluid conduits130 can also include one or more support members 140 (shownschematically) coupled to the fluid conduits 130 with one or moreadjustable fittings (not shown). The support members 140 are positionedto distribute and/or transfer the imposed loads (e.g., surge loads andpressure loads from fluid movement) on the fluid conduits 130 toappropriate reaction locations of the aircraft 100. Aspects of theinvention are directed to the adjustable fittings that couple thesupport members 140 to the fluid conduits 130, as described in greaterdetail below with reference to FIGS. 2A-4B.

FIGS. 2A-2D are illustrations of various stages of a method for usingadjustable fittings to couple support members to a fluid conduit inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2A, for example, isan isometric illustration of a preliminary stage of the methodillustrating two support members 140 positioned for attachment to aportion of the fluid conduit 130 with adjustable fittings 160. The fluidconduit 130 in the illustrated embodiment can include a first or innerconduit 131 surrounded by a second or outer conduit 132. The innerconduit 131 can be configured to carry fuel or other types of liquids.The outer conduit 132 can provide a protective shroud around the innerconduit 131 in case of a liquid and/or vapor leak in the inner conduit131. Accordingly, the inner conduit 131 and outer conduit 132 arenormally isolated from fluid communication with each other. Suitableshrouded fuel conduits are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,848,720, whichis incorporated herein by reference. In other embodiments, however, thefluid conduit 130 may have other configurations.

The fluid conduit 130 can also include one or more housings 134 attachedto the fluid conduit 130. In the illustrated embodiment, for example,the housings 134 are load-carrying supports fixedly attached to thefluid conduit 130 at desired locations. In other embodiments, however,the housings 134 can have other configurations and/or functions. Thehousings 134 also include one or more first attachment features 135positioned for engagement with the adjustable fittings 160 for couplingthe support members 140 to the fluid conduit 130. In the embodimentshown in FIG. 2A, the first attachment features 135 are generallycylindrical projections extending outwardly away from the housings 134.In other embodiments, however, the first attachment features 135 mayhave other configurations. The first attachment features 135 can alsoinclude threaded apertures 136 for receiving a fastener (e.g., a bolt)to secure the adjustable fittings 160 in place after engagement, asdescribed in detail below with respect to FIG. 2D.

The support members 140 each include a base portion 142, a firstattachment portion 144 having a first aperture 146, and a secondattachment portion 148 having a second aperture 150. In one aspect ofthis embodiment, the first and second apertures 146 and 150 haveapproximately the same diameter. In other embodiments, however, thefirst and second apertures 146 and 150 can be different sizes. The firstand second apertures 146 and 150 are positioned proximate tocorresponding first attachment features 135 on the housings 134. In theillustrated embodiment, for example, the first and second apertures 146and 150 are positioned at least approximately around the periphery ofthe corresponding first attachment features 135. In other embodiments,the support members 140 may be positioned differently with respect tothe first attachment features 135.

FIG. 2B is a plan view of one of the adjustable fittings 160. Referringto

FIGS. 2A and 2B together, each adjustable fitting 160 includes a firstside 161 and a second side 162 opposite the first side 161. The firstside 161 of each fitting 160 can include a first annular portion 164, asecond annular portion 166 having a diameter less then the diameter ofthe first annular portion 164, and a fitting aperture 168 extendingcompletely through the fitting 160. The outer diameter of the firstannular portion 164 is dimensioned to correspond at least in part to thediameter of the first and second attachment portions 144 and 148 of thesupport members 140. The second side 162 of each fitting 160 can includean engagement portion 170 positioned for engagement with the supportmembers 140. More specifically, the engagement portions 170 are sized tobe received within at least a portion of the corresponding apertures 146and 150 of the support members 140.

The fitting apertures 168 are second attachment features configured tomate with or otherwise engage corresponding first attachment features135. In the illustrated embodiment, for example, the individual fittingapertures 168 (i.e., second attachment features) are sized to receive atleast a portion of each first attachment feature 135 when the fittings160 are engaged with the support members 140. As best seen in FIG. 2B,the fitting aperture 168 of each adjustable fitting 160 has a centerpoint B eccentrically offset from a center point A of the fitting 160itself (as defined by the outer diameter of the first annular portion164). The dimension of the offset in each fitting 160 can vary based onthe particular operational requirements for the fitting. For example,several fittings 160 may have greater offsets to accommodate greatertolerances between the respective parts. Alternatively, if the partshave less tolerance, the offset dimension can be smaller.

FIG. 2C is an isometric view of the area 2C of FIG. 2A showing one ofthe adjustable fittings 160 engaged with the support member 140 and thehousing 134 to releasably couple the support member to the fluid conduit130. Although only one adjustable fitting 160 is shown in FIG. 2C, itwill be appreciated that each of the adjustable fittings 160 shown inFIG. 2A can be engaged with the corresponding support member 140 andhousing 134 in a manner generally similar to that illustrated in FIG.2C. The engagement portion 170 (shown in broken lines) of the adjustablefitting 160 is received within the first aperture 146 (shown in brokenlines) of the first attachment portion 144 of the support member 140 andthe second side 162 of the fitting 160 is in contact with at least aportion of the first attachment portion 144 of the support member 140.The fitting aperture 168 receives at least a portion of the firstattachment feature 135. In one aspect of this embodiment, the centerpoint B (FIG. 2B) of the fitting 160 is eccentrically offset from acenter point of the generally arcuate or circular end portion of thefirst attachment feature 135.

After the first attachment feature 135 is received within the fittingaperture 168, the adjustable fitting 160 can be rotated in a clockwiseand/or counterclockwise direction (as shown by the arrow R) to lock orotherwise secure the fitting 160 in place with respect to the firstattachment feature 135. More specifically, during rotation of theadjustable fitting 160, the fitting aperture 168 maintains a generallyeccentric orbit about the center point of the end portion of the firstattachment feature 135 until a portion of the fitting aperture 168engages at least a portion of the first attachment feature 135, thuspreventing further rotation of the fitting aperture 168 about the centerpoint of the end portion of the first attachment feature 135 and,accordingly, releasably securing the support member 140 to the housing134. One advantage this feature is that it allows the engagement portion170 and the fitting aperture 168 of the adjustable fitting 160 to fitwithin the first aperture 146 and over the first attachment feature 135,respectively, while accounting for manufacturing tolerances in both therelative location of the first attachment feature 135 andexpansion/contraction of the various components during fabrication. Inseveral embodiments in which the tolerances between the respective partsare extremely small, the fitting aperture 168 and the center point ofthe end portion of the first attachment feature 135 can be approximatelyconcentrically aligned after engagement with each other. In otherembodiments, however, the fitting aperture 168 and the center point ofthe end of the first attachment feature 135 are not concentricallyaligned after engagement.

FIG. 2D is an isometric illustration of an end portion of the fluidconduit 130 with a cut-away portion showing further details of theadjustable fittings 160 after the fittings 160 are installed with thesupport members 140 and corresponding first attachment features 135. Inone aspect of this embodiment, the fittings 160 can be fixedly attachedto the support members 140 with retaining hardware 180 (e.g., bolts)after the adjustable fittings 160 are rotated and locked in place withrespect to the first attachment features 135 as described above withreference to FIG. 2C. The individual fittings 160 can be secured to thehousing 134 using a fastener 182 (e.g., a bolt) and, optionally, aretaining member 184 (e.g., a washer). The retaining members 184 can bepositioned within at least a portion of the second annular portion 166of the individual fittings 160 and the fasteners 182 can be engaged withthe corresponding threaded apertures 136 of the first attachmentfeatures 135 to hold the retaining member 184 in place. In this way, thesupport members 140 are secured in place with respect to the fluidconduit 130 and the support members 140 can distribute and/or transferthe various loads imposed on the fluid conduit 130. In otherembodiments, the adjustable fittings 160 can be fixedly secured to thesupport members 140 and/or the first attachment features 135 using otherarrangements.

One feature of at least some of the embodiments of the adjustablefittings 160 described above is that the eccentrically offsetarrangement of the fitting apertures 168 (the second attachmentfeatures) with respect to the first attachment features 135 can accountfor manufacturing tolerances between the various components. Anadvantage of this feature is that it allows for interchangeability ofparts (e.g., support members) and allows a single type of part to beused universally throughout a system. For example, support members 140having the same configuration could be used at various portions of thefluid conduits 130 of the aircraft 100 (FIG. 1) without having to customfit and/or manufacture unique support members at each location.Accordingly, this feature can significantly reduce the time and expenseof manufacturing and/or retrofitting.

Another feature of at least some of the embodiments of the adjustablefittings 160 described above is that they can be installed and removedwith common hand tools. For example, the connections between thefastener 182 and the first attachment features 135 can be threadedconnections that can be secured and released with wrenches or othersuitable hand tools. An advantage of this feature is that it can reducethe time and cost associated with installation and removal of thesupport members 140 with respect to the fluid conduits 130.

FIG. 3 is an isometric illustration of a stage of a method for usingadjustable fittings to couple support members to fluid conduits inaccordance with another embodiment of the invention. More specifically,FIG. 3 is an isometric view illustrating an adjustable fitting 260positioned for attachment with the support member 140 and a housing 234carried by the fluid conduit 130. The adjustable fitting 260 and housing234 can be generally similar to the fitting 160 and housing 134described above with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B. The fitting 260 andhousing 234 illustrated in FIG. 3 differ from the fitting 160 andhousing 134 described above, however, in that the engagement portions ofthe respective parts are reversed. For example, the adjustable fitting260 includes a first attachment feature 265 projecting outwardly fromthe fitting 260 and the housing 234 includes a second attachment feature235 (e.g., an aperture) positioned to receive at least a portion of thecorresponding first attachment feature 265. After the second attachmentfeature 235 receives the first attachment feature 265, the fitting 260can be rotated in a clockwise and/or counterclockwise direction to lockor otherwise secure the fitting 260 in place with respect to the housing234, as described in greater detail above with reference to FIGS. 2C and2D. In other embodiments, the first and/or second attachment featurescan have other configurations.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments ofthe invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration,but that various modifications may be made without deviating from theinvention. For example, the adjustable fittings may have otherconfigurations. Referring to FIG. 4A, an adjustable fitting 360configured in accordance with another embodiment of the invention maynot include the second annular portion on a first side 361 of thefitting 360 and may instead only include a first annular portion 364. Instill another embodiment shown in FIG. 4B, an adjustable fitting 460 mayhave a fitting aperture 468 that does not extend completely through thefitting 460. For example, the fitting aperture 468 extends from a secondside 462 of the fitting 460 to an intermediate depth between a firstside 461 and the second side 462 of the fitting 460. Although thefitting aperture 468 does not extend completely through the fitting 460,the fitting aperture 468 is still sized to receive the necessary portionof an attachment feature to secure the fitting in place with respect tothe support member and fluid conduit. Aspects of the invention describedin the context of particular embodiments may be combined or eliminatedin other embodiments. For example, the fluid conduits can be used totransfer liquids other than fuel. Further, aspects of the inventiondescribed in the context of the specific systems of the aircraft can beimplemented in other systems and/or can be implemented in vehicles ordevices other than aircraft. Moreover, the adjustable fittings may beused to couple any type of first member to a corresponding secondmember, and are not limited to fluid conduits and/or support members.Further, while advantages associated with certain embodiments of theinvention have been described in the context of those embodiments, otherembodiments may also exhibit such advantages, and not all embodimentsneed necessarily exhibit such advantages to fall within the scope of theinvention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited, except as by theappended claims.

1-18. (canceled)
 19. A method for installing a support member with afluid conduit, the method comprising: positioning a support memberproximate to a fluid conduit, the support member including a supportmember aperture positioned over at least a portion of a first attachmentfeature carried by the fluid conduit; inserting at least a portion of anadjustable fitting having a second attachment feature through thesupport member aperture and mating the first and second attachmentfeatures, wherein the second attachment feature is eccentrically offsetfrom a center point of the adjustable fitting; and rotating theadjustable fitting with respect to the first attachment feature untilthe second attachment feature fixedly engages at least a portion of thefirst attachment feature to secure the support member in place withrespect to the fluid conduit.
 20. The method of claim 19 wherein (a) thefirst attachment feature comprises a projection extending outwardly froma housing fixedly attached to the fluid conduit, the projectionincluding a generally arcuate end portion with a center point defined atleast in part by the end portion, and (b) the second attachment featurecomprises an aperture extending at least partially through theadjustable fitting and configured to receive the projection, andwherein: inserting at least a portion of an adjustable fitting having asecond attachment feature through the support member aperture and matingthe first and second attachment features comprises inserting theaperture over at least a portion of the projection; and rotating theadjustable fitting with respect to the first attachment featurecomprises rotating the adjustable fitting such that the aperturemaintains a generally eccentric orbit about the center point until theaperture engages at least a portion of the projection to secure theadjustable fitting in place against the support member and fluidconduit.
 21. The method of claim 19 wherein (a) the second attachmentfeature comprises a projection extending outwardly from the adjustablefitting, and (b) the first attachment feature comprises an apertureextending through at least a portion of a housing fixedly attached tothe conduit, and wherein: inserting at least a portion of an adjustablefitting having a second attachment feature through the support memberaperture and mating the first and second attachment features comprisesinserting the projection into at least a portion of the aperture in thehousing; and rotating the adjustable fitting with respect to the firstattachment feature comprises rotating the adjustable fitting such thatthe projection maintains a generally eccentric orbit about the aperturein the housing until the projection engages at least a portion of theaperture to secure the adjustable fitting in place against the supportmember and fluid conduit.
 22. The method of claim 19, furthercomprising: releasably attaching the adjustable fitting to the supportmember with one or more first fasteners extending through the adjustablefitting and at least a portion of the support member; and releasablycoupling the adjustable fitting to the attachment feature with a secondfastener extending through the second attachment feature and at least aportion of the first attachment feature.
 23. The method of claim 19wherein inserting an adjustable fitting through the support member androtating the adjustable fitting with respect to the first attachmentfeature comprises using common hand tools to install the adjustablefitting.
 24. The method of claim 19, further comprising transferring atleast approximately all the surge loads and the pressure loads from thefluid conduit to the support member after attachment.
 25. The method ofclaim 19 wherein the support member aperture is a first support memberaperture and the adjustable fitting is a first adjustable fitting, andwherein the method further comprises: positioning a second supportmember aperture over at least a portion of another first attachmentfeature carried by the fluid conduit; inserting at least a portion of asecond adjustable fitting having a second attachment feature through thesecond support member aperture and mating the corresponding first andsecond attachment features, wherein the second attachment feature of thesecond adjustable fitting is eccentrically offset from a center point ofthe second adjustable fitting; and rotating the second adjustablefitting with respect to the corresponding first attachment feature untilthe second attachment feature fixedly engages at least a portion of thecorresponding first attachment feature to secure the support member inplace with respect to the fluid conduit, and wherein the first andsecond adjustable fittings have different eccentric orientationsrelative to the corresponding first attachment features.
 26. The methodof claim 19 wherein inserting at least a portion of an adjustablefitting through the support member aperture comprises inserting anadjustable fitting with a first annular portion having a first dimensionand a second annular portion having a second dimension less than thefirst dimension.
 27. The method of claim 19 wherein positioning asupport member proximate to a fluid conduit comprises positioning asupport member proximate to a fluid conduit carried by an aircraft. 28.The method of claim 19 wherein assembly of claim 14 wherein rotating theadjustable fitting with respect to the first attachment featurecomprises rotating the adjustable fitting in a generally clockwiseand/or counterclockwise direction to secure the adjustable fittingagainst at least a portion of the first attachment feature.
 29. Themethod of claim 19 wherein positioning a support member proximate to afluid conduit comprises positioning the support member proximate to afluid conduit operably coupled to a fuel tank carried by at least one ofa fuselage portion and a wing portion of an aircraft.
 30. A method forattaching a support member to a fluid conduit carried by an aircraft,the method comprising: positioning the support member proximate to thefluid conduit, the support member including (a) a first attachmentportion having a first aperture proximate to a first load-carryingsupport fixedly attached to the fluid conduit, and (b) a secondattachment portion having a second aperture proximate to a secondload-carrying support fixedly attached to the support member and spacedapart from the first housing, wherein each load-carrying supportincludes a first attachment feature; releasably coupling the firstattachment portion of the support member to the first load-carryingsupport by— mating the first attachment feature of the firstload-carrying support with a second attachment feature of the firstadjustable fitting, wherein the second attachment feature iseccentrically offset from a center point of the first adjustablefitting; and rotating the first adjustable fitting with respect to thefirst attachment feature until the second attachment feature fixedlyengages at least a portion of the first attachment feature to secure thesupport member in place with respect to the first load-carrying supportof the fluid conduit; and releasably coupling the second attachmentportion of the support member to the second load-carrying support by—mating the first attachment feature of the second load-carrying supportwith a third attachment feature of the second adjustable fitting,wherein the third attachment feature is eccentrically offset from acenter point of the second adjustable fitting; and rotating the secondadjustable fitting with respect to the corresponding first attachmentfeature until the third attachment feature fixedly engages at least aportion of the first attachment feature to secure the support member inplace with respect to the second load-carrying support of the fluidconduit.
 31. The method of claim 30 wherein (a) the individual firstattachment features comprise a projection extending outwardly from therespective load-carrying supports fixedly attached to the fluid conduit,the projections including a generally arcuate end portion with a centerpoint defined at least in part by the end portion, and (b) the secondattachment feature comprises a first aperture extending at leastpartially through the first adjustable fitting and configured to receivea corresponding projection of the first load-carrying support, and (c)the third attachment feature comprises a second aperture extending atleast partially through the second adjustable fitting and configured toreceive a corresponding projection of the second load-carrying support,and wherein: mating the first attachment feature of the firstload-carrying support with a second attachment feature of the firstadjustable fitting comprises inserting the first aperture of the firstadjustable fitting over at least a portion of the respective projection;and rotating the first adjustable fitting with respect to thecorresponding first attachment feature comprises rotating the firstadjustable fitting such that the first aperture maintains a generallyeccentric orbit about the center point until the first aperture engagesat least a portion of the corresponding projection to secure the firstadjustable fitting in place against the support member and the firstload-carrying support of the fluid conduit.
 32. The method of claim 31wherein: mating the first attachment feature of the second load-carryingsupport with a third attachment feature of the second adjustable fittingcomprises inserting the second aperture of the second adjustable fittingover at least a portion of the respective projection; and rotating thesecond adjustable fitting with respect to the corresponding firstattachment feature comprises rotating the second adjustable fitting suchthat the second aperture maintains a generally eccentric orbit about thecenter point until the second aperture engages at least a portion of thecorresponding projection to secure the second adjustable fitting inplace against the support member and the second load-carrying support ofthe fluid conduit.
 33. The method of claim 30 wherein (a) the second andthird attachment features each comprise a projection extending outwardlyaway from the first and second adjustable fittings, respectively, and(b) the individual first attachment features comprise an apertureextending through at least a portion of corresponding first and secondload-carrying supports fixedly attached to the fluid conduit, andwherein: mating the first attachment feature of the first load-carryingsupport with a second attachment feature of the first adjustable fittingcomprises inserting the projection of the first adjustable fitting intoat least a portion of the aperture in the first load-carrying support;and rotating the first adjustable fitting with respect to thecorresponding first attachment feature comprises rotating the firstadjustable fitting such that the corresponding projection maintains agenerally eccentric orbit about the aperture in the first load-carryingsupport until the projection engages at least a portion of the apertureto secure the first adjustable fitting in place against the supportmember and the first load-carrying support of the fluid conduit.
 34. Themethod of claim 33 wherein: mating the first attachment feature of thesecond load-carrying support with a third attachment feature of thesecond adjustable fitting comprises inserting the projection of thesecond adjustable fitting into at least a portion of the aperture in thesecond load-carrying support; and rotating the second adjustable fittingwith respect to the corresponding first attachment feature comprisesrotating the second adjustable fitting such that the correspondingprojection maintains a generally eccentric orbit about the aperture inthe second load-carrying support until the projection engages at least aportion of the aperture to secure the second adjustable fitting in placeagainst the support member and the second load-carrying support of thefluid conduit.
 35. The method of claim 30, further comprising fixedlyattaching the first and second adjustable fittings to the first andsecond load-carrying supports, respectively, with one or more fasteners.36. The method of claim 30, further comprising distributing and/ortransferring at least approximately all of the surge loads and thepressure loads from the fluid conduit to appropriate reaction locationof the aircraft via the support member.